It’s 3:00 AM and your report/paper/three-day-late-birthday-card is due first thing in the morning. So you design it using whatever expensive bundled desktop publishing software you have available. Click print and then give up three hours later when the sun starts to rise and hope you can get to the copier store or the printer at work/school in time.

Our “Design-A-Sign” Scholarship Contest may be ending soon (May 24th, to be exact), but it’s not too late to move up in the ranks! With the enough momentum and votes, climbing to the very top is still possible. We’re here to share a few easy ways how you can leverage social media to win the grand prize, a $1000 scholarship! Keep reading to learn more.

Like It. Like It A Lot.

Ask your Facebook friends to vote for your design! Be sure to use our plug-in to share your design with everyone you know. You can also ask your friends to share your design with their friends so that they can share it with their friends… so on and so on. It’s a quick way to multiply the number of votes you have, so take advantage of it!

There’s No Tweet About It!

It seems like everyone’s on Twitter these days. Make sure to spread the word about your design with a well-hashtagged tweet. The right #hashtags will make sure that people see your 140-character tweet! May we suggest #designasign, #vote, #scholarship, and #signazon?

Broadcast Your Design.

Nothing goes viral faster than a Youtube video. A funny idea (nothing dangerous, please!) could be a huge hit, and it’s the perfect way to reach a lot of people around the world. You don’t even have to do anything too outrageous. A simple, creative video showcasing your design could get hundreds of hits, in turn getting your design hundreds of votes.

It’s All About The Reblogs.

Like Youtube videos, Tumblr posts reach hundreds of people in a very short time, thanks to the handy reblog button in the upper right corner of every Tumblr post. Create a reblog-worthy design and share it with your Tumblr followers. Make sure to explain why you need their help spreading the word about your design. Soon, you’ll be tumblr-ing to victory!

These are just a few suggestions. There are, of course, several other social media platforms you can use, including Instagram, Pinterest, Google+, and more. It’s just important to remember that it’s not too late to win, so don’t stop getting out the vote!

Being a high school junior or senior can bring numerous challenges. Attempting to balance academics, extracurricular activities, a social life, and maybe even a part time job can be overwhelming. It is no wonder that so many young students will put the idea of scholarships to rest, once they realize how time-consuming it can be to apply. Although the process may seem daunting, there are many reasons why it is worth the effort to apply.

College is expensive, and unless you are lucky enough to receive a full ride scholarship you will most likely borrow loans to pay for your schooling. Paying for these loans is a heavy burden for a college student, whether they be paid while attending college or in the years following graduation. Paying off the debt of student loans completely can take several years, especially if the loans are not used wisely. Fortunately, there is a large amount of scholarships available for students, and the financial woes of college can be lessened by these awards. Even applying for scholarships that do not yield high amounts of money will be beneficial when it comes to paying for tuition, books, and other expenses. The most important thing to remember is that the amount of money that you earn from scholarships is FREE MONEY! You do not need to repay it, and your hard work is what earned you the reward.

What Does It Take To Win?

Though you may not feel that you are capable of winning the scholarships with high competition and award money, you may find that there are many scholarships that you can acquire. Put away the idea that only gifted athletes and super geniuses are the ones who win scholarships. Remember, persistence is key when taking on the varying challenges that each scholarship may require, and the effort you put into each application will give you a greater chance of winning.

With that being said, we encourage you to enter Signazon.com’s very own “Design-A-Sign” Scholarship Contest! All you need to win this award is some creativity and a dream. The contest ends on May 24, 2013 so enter today!

If you are reading this article then you have probably already begun looking for scholarships. Congratulations! You are on the right road! While it is never too late to start looking for scholarships to pay for college (especially if you are looking for graduate level programs) it is always best to start sooner rather than later. The highest volume of available scholarship opportunities are for juniors and seniors in High School. Even Signazon.com’s own “Design-A-Sign” Scholarship Contest is targeted to High School Juniors and seniors. At the latest, the middle of your senior year of High School is when you should start. It takes time for submissions to be processed and a lot of scholarships have deadline submission dates. Give yourself enough time to find and apply for the scholarships.

Souce: lifehack.org

How Do I Manage it?

If the scholarship allows for it, get them to send it to the institution (provided you have already selected one). That puts the money directly to the costs of attending the school and makes it harder to accidentally spend the money on other things. Even then, a lot of schools disburse the left over scholarship funds once the semester is paid for. If you have remaining money or if the scholarship was paid by a direct check, put it into a bank account that only has scholarship money. By not pooling your scholarship resources with your regular bank account you are less likely to spend it on everyday items. This makes it much easier to follow any guidelines and restrictions placed by the scholarship on the fund.

What Should I Use It For?

Your future of course! In all seriousness, you should check the guidelines listed for any scholarship you receive. Many of them have stipulations on usage limiting the money to tuition, books, or housing. Those that do not you can put to use in purchasing additional supplies like a computer, fuel, bus fare, or even food. If you find yourself with a decent surplus of college funding early on in the semester, use it to open a CD or other savings fund. As I said before, the easiest time to get scholarships is during your Junior and Senior year of High School. When money gets tight around your junior year of College it will be nice to have an even greater return from whatever you did not use during your first two years! Even if you do not use it at that point it is a nice bonus to have when you start down your chosen career path!

There are three main reasons why people often do not bother to apply for scholarships: One, because they think that they would not qualify. Two, they think that it is too much work to apply. And three, they do not want to bother with the numerous scholarship scams out there- especially on the internet. These are pretty significantly high barriers to overcome. If a student is going to dedicate time and energy to write a unique and persuasive essay, they need to know for certain if it is worth it or not. We will explore how to overcome each barrier below.

The impression of a scholarship is that you need to earn it with a high level of academic achievement or athletic performance. That may be true for ones offered by schools or honors associations, but there are actually many scholarships out there which most students can qualify for. As long as you are willing to demonstrate creativity and intelligence, any of these scholarships are within your reach. Here are some things to remember: Never let the qualifications scare you out of applying, and just because you don’t qualify for one, does not mean you do not qualify for all of them.

Though the reward may not be as large as a full ride to your college of choice, applying for many smaller-incentive scholarships could actually allow you to accumulate more money for college. Taking a look back at the scholarships offered in 2012, there have been some very easy ones to apply for. Take the “I Was Born in 1995 Scholarship” for example. All applicants had to do was submit an essay of 250 words or less and…you guessed it: be born in 1995. Then, the most creative essay received $1,995 for college. As you can see it’s worth it to take a step back during junior/senior year to look at how much you would have to save up for college. Make a list of all the possible scholarships you can earn, and go out there and apply for them. Then, make benchmarks of how many semesters you have accumulated enough money for. Taking small steps for the long journey may be your best bet, because applying for a scholarship with a large incentive is kind of like putting all your eggs in one basket.

This is the most important barrier of scholarships- when they are scams. Before you apply to anything, always do some research to see if the organization that is offering the scholarship is real and if scholarship you are thinking about applying to is legitimate. There’s no return in focusing your efforts into something that is nonexistent. Here are a few tips on how to avoid these scams: An alarm should go off in your head if you have to pay an application fee, so always make sure you are getting what you’re paying for. The next one also has to do with your wallet, but it is more obvious. If you must buy something to be considered or if the organization wants your credit card/bank account information, back out immediately. These are extremely common schemes that people try to use to steal money from students.

Hopefully, that did not further deter you from applying to scholarships! To reiterate, apply to as many scholarships as possible, because they are out there waiting to be won. Do not be afraid that you will not qualify because the action of applying already shows initiative. We hope to have brought you some valuable insight on how to apply for scholarships efficiently, and we wish you the very best in your academic careers. If you wish to apply for the Design-A-Sign Scholarship Contest, it’s not too late! The contest ends on May 24th, 2013.

Be sure to enter the latest edition of Signazon.com’s “Design-A-Sign” Contests!

The 3rd Annual “Design-A-Sign” Scholarship Contest lets applicants and visitors enter, design or upload a sign, and cast votes via the contest website to compete for one of three scholarship prizes. To enter the contest an entrant can upload a completed sign design or use the Signazon.com online design tool to create one from scratch. Once a design is officially submitted any visitor of the contest site, including the entrant’s family and friends, can vote to increase the design’s score. Additionally, the site allows for social media use so the entrant can communicate with voters through Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc. Over the course of the contest (March 25-May 24) the entrant’s designs will compete against others for the most votes. The winner, based on the number of votes, will receive a $1,000 scholarship and a one year 10% Signazon.com discount for their school! Second and third place winners will receive $200 and $100 scholarships.

All entry and participation requirements can be fulfilled and managed on the contest website. There will be no fax, email, or mailed submissions. The 3rd Annual “Design-A-Sign” Scholarship Contest exists to help students follow their dreams after high school as well as providing the canvas for students to use art and design to express those passions. Signazon.com is proud to host such a scholarship and is excited to meet and learn more about the entrants.

Student Business Card [noun]:
A small card, usually 2″x3.5″, on which a student’s contact information is printed. An essential tool for students in college and graduate school.

Student business cards have definitely been a trend in recent years. More and more students are investing in business cards, and you should too. Here are a couple reasons why you need a set of business cards and a few tips on how you should use them.

Networking. The mere thought of it fills some people with dread. Meeting new people, especially in a formal business environment, can be uncomfortable, but it doesn’t have to be. These six tips will make networking easier for you so that the next time you find yourself at an event, you’ll be excited and ready to mingle. Continue Reading

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas… There’s holiday music playing on the radio, gingerbread cookies baking in the oven, and spiced cider heating up on the stove. Everyone’s got their own way of getting excited for the holidays. At Signazon.com, we love looking at pictures of festive window displays to get ourselves in the spirit of Christmas. Here are a few of our favorite window displays that you can use as inspiration for your business or home. Enjoy!

We love these homemade pinwheels from Colorbok. What a fun and easy way to add a little bit of Christmas cheer to your home or business. We bet these pinwheels would look especially lovely hanging in the windows of a small boutique or cafe.

Recently our agents came across a series of documents from the elusive Society of Sign Afficiandos. These documents hold sign secrets never before revealed to the public. Over the next few weeks, we’ll be sharing the secrets with you. Below is Doc. 3, “Size Matters,” an excerpt from the Society of Sign Aficionados’s manifesto, Essentials for Sign Design: